Former union president named to Mo. highway panel

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Gov. Jay Nixon has appointed a former union president to the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission.

Nixon on Thursday selected Joseph Hunt of St. Louis to serve on the state board that decides how to spend Missouri’s highway money.

Hunt is a Democrat and is the general president emeritus of the Ironworkers International. He also has served as a board member for the Lambert St. Louis International Airport Commission and on the regional committee of the National Infrastructure Alliance.

Hunt replaces on the Transportation Commission David Gach, a Democrat, whose term had expired. Hunt’s appointment lasts until 2017 and would require Senate confirmation when lawmakers return to the Capitol.